So last time The Last Carnival toured, back in April, the blog thing never quite happened. I was too busy flitting between their shows and Gary’s shows and trying to fit in work, food and sleep as well. Admittedly I probably could go back and string something interesting together from the notes I made at the time, but I think anyone familiar with this blog will be aware of my track record on that front. It will never happen. So! New tour, new start. Seven shows = seven blogs (or possibly eight if I feel the need for an ‘I love you all, thank you for everything, you rock my world *squeezy hugs*’ type post-tour blog). Easy, right? Ha.
So, let’s do this! Opening night; London, Camden Barfly. I may have been a teensie bit on edge during the day; the usual pre-gig nervous tension, massively intensified by the fact it’s them and, you know, stuff. Plus some other news (see ‘other news’ :P) really didn’t help to calm me down any. Naturally, the logical course of action was to turn to twitter for assistance, at which point one of my friends kindly mentioned Justin’s hands, which I’d somehow managed to forget about in the general excitement over seeing the rest of him. It didn’t exactly stop my heart from racing, but it did make me laugh, which in turn actually did help to calm me down a bit, so props to my friend!
VIP (well they’re calling it ‘club’ this tour, but whatever :P):
I had to rush from the office, so I got there a little after they opened doors for VIP but it did mean I got to say a proper hello to Big T, complete with a massive, squeezy, lift me off of my feet hug. I’ve missed that man almost as much as I’ve missed my boys :D.
VIP itself was a bit brilliant, mostly just because it wasn’t too busy or rushed. When I walked in I did the rounds, employing my trademark ‘grab them from behind for a hug’ method and said hi to everyone, then went round again getting selfies and having proper chats. I got a fair few birthday greetings (from Tony on my way in, plus Kieran, Ads and later, Russ) which was rather lovely and tonnes of compliments on my hair (relatively freshly coloured layers of cyclamen pink, violet and capri blue) from pretty much everyone (except the usual suspect, but that was always going to be too much to ask…). After stressing about my wardrobe for days, with an intensified 2+ hours of sheer panic last night (to the point that when I actually got dressed this morning it was nowhere near as bad as I thought it was going to be – my dress wasn’t that short. Well, ish.) I was rather chuffed to also get a load of compliments on my dress and it’s, admittedly unplanned (I was actually worried it would clash), colour coordination with my hair. All in all, it was a good day for my self-confidence :P.
So there was much chatting, most of which will be of no interest to anyone but me, but I’m sticking some random comments here for the sake of my own appalling memory. Kieran mentioned one of my friends who was coming by name, which threw me slightly, but I just assumed I must’ve mentioned him in passing. Turns out my friend had actually been in contact with Kieran over a birthday something. Not that there was a something, but Kieran was at least the only individual band member to contact me on the day (although I know another friend also contacted him on the subject, just prior to him messaging me…). Apparently Kieran wasn’t actually my friend’s first point of contact, but if I can’t get a ready response, I’d have been pretty peeved if my friend had :P. I also chatted to Kieran about the new music and he told me the setlist was almost all new stuff.
I barely managed a proper hug off of Justin on my first circuit of the room (*sulk mutter*), but made up for it the second time around and had a proper chat, just like old times :). I complimented him on his hair (which has grown on me, even if it’s not quite as devastatingly attractive as his old sticky up look – but hey, I’ve still got Tom if I want a bit of fluff :P) and we discussed his latest style. He’s growing the front bit even longer (like someone from something that I’ve never heard of and therefore can’t remember), but it actually has some serious length on it already. I’ll confess it does look rather attractive once it gets a bit less groomed on stage… ;). On a less fangirly note, I told him all about Richard III and the blood. I think it’s my latest favourite story. And on a more fangirly note, I also complimented him on the little handkerchiefy scarf thing he had tied around his throat and he cracked a joke about being a girl guide. I also had a good old natter with Russ, which was well overdue! He’s also experimenting with a new style, no colour (well no red colour – he’s dyed it dark brown over the top) and it’s longer/flatter in the front. Obviously this sort of thing requires intense conversation, but we did lighten things up a bit with some literary discussion (and me moaning about my deaded kindle). He was telling me about a dude called Markus Rothkranz, so I’ll have to do some googling at some point. I also finally remembered to ask Ads for a broken stick, if he ends up with one.
The acoustic set was comprised of High, The Scream Boy Shuffle and There’s A Road and as soon as they started playing, it felt like coming home. It was wonderful to see/hear them play again and it felt so good to have them back in my life. Not that simply seeing them again didn’t feel fantastic, but watching them play… I nearly cried during There’s A Road. I’d pretty much resigned myself to never hearing that one live, so I was over the moon just to have it on the setlist, but wow. The acoustic arrangement is stunning and it packs a rather emotional punch. I actually got properly choked up over it, almost to the point of tears (which would’ve been a fabulous start (and end) to my ‘I will not cry on this tour’ wager). It really was something special, though. I shall require a video of that before the end of tour.
Support:
I wasn’t sure what to expect from Sally Pepper, having not actually got around to listening to her. She’s not particularly my style but she has an absolutely gorgeous voice and she’s also got a kinda sweet yet edgy stage presence. She reminds me of my sister a little bit, but I suspect that’s just the short, very blonde hair and elements of her style. Anyhoo, I’m not ready to rush out and buy her CD, but it’ll be no hardship listening to her at the other dates she’s doing. Her voice really is fabulous and I like the way she sings.
Next up were The Moon And Tide, who reminded me a little of Lacey. The lead singer was pretty cute too :P. I wasn’t overly enamored but they’d potentially be capable of winning me round if they get another chance on some future tour.
I thought The Afterparty were a tad loud and shouty for my taste (I’m getting old aren’t I? *sigh*) but I enjoyed When The Lights Go Out and the others I was vaguely familiar with thanks to Spotify weren’t bad either so I reckon they could be a grower. I guess we’ll find out!
One of my friends made a comment during the support section of the evening that the keyboard player is usually only there because he has a van to drive the band around in or a garage for band storage space. It rather amused me, but obviously Kieran is an exception to that theory (seriously; The Last Carnival just wouldn’t sound the same without keys)!
Show:
So I may have been a tad tipsy thanks to a couple of glasses of rosé courtesy of my friends, but I was frickin’ excited!!! I told myself I wouldn’t sneak a look at the setlist, but it’s just too tempting when it’s sat right there. There really wasn’t much I properly knew; the Too Many Dreams intro, The Call Of ’56, Luisa Rey and the Roll Over Beethoven cover. A few others I knew from last tour, but I’m not fully familiar with those yet (although I did at least know enough to be ready to film Justin and Russ during the Crazy guitar solo. Which was possibly a good thing as Russ licked Justin’s face and I don’t think I’ve seen that one before, it’s usually the other way around. And I definitely wasn’t jealous *coughs*). Still, the only real setlist surprise for me was the lack of No Hero, at least until they hit a new track called Beautiful. Which is one of the most beautiful songs I’ve heard in a while. It was so good I didn’t even mind the fact it’s obviously replaced my favourite track. They actually have a similar sort of sound so I can understand picking one over the other, but seriously; wow. Russell’s outdone himself with this one. It gave me tingles right from the start and I’m sure I had my ‘little girl seeing the Magic Kingdom for the first time’ expression of awe on my face. Kieran commented afterwards that he’d noticed me enjoying that one! And that was how I felt about it before it hit Justin’s solo…
And speaking of the Welsh Dragon… I did a lot of swooning this evening. A lot. There may even have been the occasional whimper… Seriously, the man is beautiful. And as I mentioned earlier his hair looks damn good in its current style when he’s tossing his head back and forth like that. He also caught my eye a fair few times and even pulled a few faces at me, which was kinda unexpected, but nice. It really does feel like old times again *happy sigh*. Of course I got a few Kieran smiles and a Russ one, but I wasn’t very close to him so I wasn’t really expecting any interaction. As always, I positioned myself over on Justin’s side, but I intentionally selected a spot right on the end so there was space for my friends who were coming later to join me. I had a fabulous view of Kieran’s new box too 😛 (it’s not actually a box it’s just a few pieces of board surrounding his keyboard with the new Tony the Tiger logo on it, but it looks quite swanky). I complimented him on it afterwards and he joked that I had no idea what goes on behind it. I think if he had his way he’d have a Steel Panther groupie sort of situation going on back there :P. Anyhoo my positioning naturally gave me a fabulous view of my main man and on a few occasions he even came right to the edge of the stage directly in front of me. If I didn’t know better I’d swear he does it on purpose just to torment me 😛 (obviously it’s a very sweet sort of torment and I wouldn’t give it up for the world but that’s besides the point). I did feel like I spent a good proportion of their set in a molten puddle and that had nothing whatsoever to do with the temperature.
Justin Morris
So I’m sure it comes as no surprise that overall I absolutely loved it. Seeing them play like that again, doing what they do best, was even more like a homecoming than the acoustic set. No matter what else I feel for them and no matter how complex some of my emotions are, when it comes down to it, it’s still just about that. The same as it was the very first time I saw them play, before I’d even had a chance to develop any emotions beyond ‘he’s a bit of alright’. Five guys on a stage, rocking my world.
Post-show:
So I stole Justin’s setlist almost before they’d finished playing (I was feeling determined! Kieran actually congratulated me on it as he was leaving the stage and Justin made a crack about it when I got him to sign it) and decided it was about time I got a fully signed one again, since I had my friend on photography duty so I didn’t have to juggle my camera as well as the setlist and pen (although I did have a third glass of wine to coordinate instead).
The Last Carnival – London Setlist
I chatted to all of them a bit, with a couple of my friends. Adam was discussing venues (I’ve now decided that they need to play the Cavern Club in Liverpool so I can see them there), I talked to Russ about the new stuff and Mike about the fans (the air blowing kind they had on stage, not the me kind). He seemed rather fond of the fans. Kieran mostly seemed disappointed that they hadn’t made Justin’s hair flap! I also raved about Beautiful to anyone who would listen and did a lot of bouncing. It possibly didn’t help that Justin was the first person I spoke to. I really need to learn to calm down after the gig before I attempt to talk to him. I can’t handle post-gig fangirling and hot guitarist fangirling at the same time. I also asked after the album, but sounds like it won’t be out until the end of the year or possibly early next. Not that I mind waiting for it to be perfect (Russ was telling me his process for picking the track list – essentially making CDs and listening to them in a way that a casual fan might – like in the car, which was far more interesting than I just made it sound), but if so they’d better do another tour between now and the album launch or I may cry. I may have moaned to Russ that I hate how between tours I barely speak to them and he pointed out he’s not really one for random chit chat. I decided I’ll have to come up with something intelligent to talk about and then message him :P.
I also saw a few familiar faces in the crowd, including other fans and a few other bands. I spotted a few of the Lost Dials boys, but I’ve never spoken to them before so didn’t intend to start this evening. I also saw Mike & Tom from Woodward (the band formerly known as Room Service) and I did talk to them a bit. It sounds like Brighton is going to be fun. And messy. Definitely messy :P. The only person I didn’t see that I’d expected to was Lawrence (the photographer), which was a shame, but there were certainly enough familiar faces to have me flitting around like a social butterfly at times. It was unexpected and rather enjoyable, especially for someone used to being the sad loner on these tours. That said, I am getting to know a few people now. Plus it seems the Colliers are coming to the Sheffield gig, so yayness! Hopefully they’ll hang around a bit and I’ll actually have a chance to catch up with them properly.
I didn’t even try to stay upstairs at kick out time, but still couldn’t quite bring myself to leave…! Two of my three friends had departed by that point, but my stalwart bestie stuck by me and kept me company while I settled in for my usual loitering. I’d already had a fair few homecoming type emotions this evening, but hanging around the van was another one. It felt so good to be back :). There was nothing overly exciting about any of it, but still. I was introduced to Tia (merch) and Benji (the photographer), neither of whom I’d met before and both of whom seemed lovely plus I chatted to various band members as they packed up. Kieran and I discussed Steel Panther & the fact I’m slightly nervous about VIP as the band are so intimidating (I mentioned the tour in general and he seemed oblivious – nice to know he pays attention to what I tell him… not sure I’ll bother next time!) plus I had a fairly good go at trying to convince him to see Rock Of Ages. I may also have ruffled his hair a bit (read: a lot).
I had a discussion with Adam about his frequent misspelling of my surname (along with the swanky new printed labels they used for this bout of ticketing; Kieran’s work, I’m lead to believe). That somehow drifted into a brief explanation of where the name actually came from plus a brief introduction to my family history. I’m sure they were fascinated… And speaking of family origins (it’s a weak segue, but bear with me), I somewhat randomly asked Justin if he spoke Welsh. My friend was thoroughly bewildered while I was just impressed I’d finally remembered to ask having been oddly curious for months (he learnt at school, but doesn’t speak it now – for those who’re interested). I also asked after Tom for some inexplicable reason (I wouldn’t usually mention him without cause) and was then thoroughly surprised to actually receive a straight answer, including a drunken anecdote. I also spoke to Tony a bit, who seemed reasonably happy that I’ll be around for lots of meandering conversations this tour! I chatted to him when he was on stage setting up too and he made a quip about Tony the Tiger as well, compete with a growl! Clearly it’s not just me :P.
Anyhoo, throughout most of this I appeared to be attempting a Marilyn Monroe impression (my skirt flew up with every hint of a breeze). I also may have been a tad tipsy throughout the various exchanges, but it was so nice to hang out with them like that again; just loitering about and nattering with whoever strayed too close.
To be honest, I don’t think I ever really calmed down all night. I built it all up so much in advance that I was still on edge right through VIP, even though (exactly as expected) I did feel a hell of a lot better as soon as I saw them all. After that, I think it was just a combination of too much wine on a relatively empty stomach and the sheer bliss of seeing them again. I was so buzzed.
Finally, the feedback from my friends all seemed positive, which makes me happy. One of them suggested she would be up for seeing them again in the future, which is always a good sign. Another of them commented that she could see why I was so captivated by Justin when he’s on stage, and the message I received from her when I got home (accompanying a rather delectable collection of photographs that she’d taken, mostly of Justin) included the words “He is quite photographable, although could be all the strutting around like a peacock :p”. Hit the nail on the head, no?!
And so! In other news, Liam Tamne is joining the Phantom Of The Opera cast as Raoul from 1st September. Liam Tamne. Phantom Of The Opera. Liam. Phantom… Given I was already excited fit to burst in anticipation of the gig tonight, I really wasn’t prepared for that sort of calibre of announcement. Not only do I now have an excuse to go back to Phantom again (and again and again…), I also have Liam back in the West End, in a far superior part (in my opinion) to Enjolras. Phantom may not be my favourite show any more, but it could well become a temporary happy place if I get to see him when I go. Can we just appreciate how awesome it will be to hear him in Down Once More? Not to mention All I Ask Of You? Serious fangirl overload and this was all before noon!
So, more Last Carnival tomorrow (and the day after that etc. etc.), but until then SQUEEEEEEEEE. It’s good to be back on tour 😀 and the immediate aftermath of the first night is always the best – that feeling of having the whole tour ahead of me… Bliss.
Peace, loVe loVe and rock ‘n’ roll,
K xx
[Actual publish date: 20/08/2014]
So Currently Captivated 
Leave a comment